Every year I throw a bring your own BBQ for the my department (plus partners). I do a bring a steak, bring a bottle just because that way I don't stress about who is going to turn up. If they do we have food, and if they don't we are not wasting anything.
So yesterday was spent playing with the new computer, cleaning the house and garden, taking a Volvo full of stuff to the local tip and putting up a couple of party tents in case it rained.
I've thrown this BBQ for the last 5 years and it has rained every single year. This year was no exception - it came down in torrents (OK not New York / New Jersey torrents, but a lot!) But everyone seemed to have a good time, we ate, drank and were merry. I managed to keep track of what I was drinking so I had much less than I have in the past. I didn't eat too much meat either, I was actually a little proud of myself for not going all out. Until the cup cakes someone brought for dessert came out. I had 1 chocolate, 1 lemon, 1 blueberry and then another chocolate. And then felt really guilty!
We got the garden fire out once the rain stopped a little and it started to get dark got that going to keep everyone warm.
As we are all starting to get a little older people start leaving earlier - in the first couple of years people stayed until 2ish, yesterday most people were gone by midnight, and the last left at 1ish. A friend of Mrs Stace was staying with us, rather than catching a train home, and the three of us chatted away until nearly 2. I knew when we went to bed that it was too late and I was going to regret it, and indeed I do! I'm exhausted! I feel like I have lungfuls of smoke from the fire, and that I need to go back to bed!
Thankfully everything was left quite clean outside, and we can't dismantle the tents until they dry (June next year?) we just have the Kitchen to sort out. Also not really that much of a problem, I just have to get off the sofa to do it...
I guess I had better do that now, my parents-in-law are coming for a drink in half an hour. I hope that I can stay awake whilst they are here!
Showing posts with label bbq. Show all posts
Showing posts with label bbq. Show all posts
Sunday, 28 August 2011
Sunday, 18 July 2010
A glorious weekend
Well I’m sitting here on a lovely summers evening, the soothing tones (well to me at least) of Muse are gently coming through the back door into the garden, and I am sitting here in the garden typing up a blog at the end of a wonderful weekend.
Hmm, too many superlatives there I think... Still I’m in a quite a happy place, long may it continue.
Friday evening was superb. We had a small kerfuffle before we left regarding me and my other wardrobe. I was afraid that was going to be the tone of the evening, but we left that at home thankfully. We went a favourite restaurant of ours and enjoyed an evening talking, laughing and generally reminding each other why we have been together nearly 10 years now (and married for 6 of those). The food, as always at that place, was fantastic. Smoked Eel and toast starter for me, Carpaccio of beef for Mrs Stace, three very tender loins of lamb for me, a steak for Mrs Stace - very strange steak though, it came with gravy and two rounds of bread, nothing else... They gave her some free chips and I gave her some of my vegetables – but the meat was lovely she assured me. And finally, for desert, chocolate walnut brownie with white chocolate ice cream; I won’t try to describe it as it wouldn’t be fair to you. But needless to say it was a wonderful way to end the meal. Even if the ice cream was a little too rich and neither of us could finish both scoops.
We were going to try a new restaurant, on the edge of a man-made lake in the neighbourhood. We thought it would be nice to look out over the water as we ate. But... We looked at the menu and decided not to. I’m not the most activist person in the world, far from it in fact, but the there are a few things that I do know are bad. Eating Blue Fin tuna is one. We were watching a program on the BBC about it last year; the presenter interviewed the team of the Blue Fin Tuna Company about the fact that there are so few of the fish left that estimations are that there are 2 years left before it becomes extinct. That would be closer to 18 months now I guess. The people on the stand didn’t object to the study, or try to refute anything. No, they just said ‘we know, but don’t worry the company has contingency plans for when that happens.’ That sentence made me sick, they are knowingly hunting an animal to extinction, and they think I am worried about their company when they kill off their product. I couldn’t care less; I do care about needlessly killing off a species of fish though. So any restaurant that has that on the menu is one that I won’t be visiting if I can help it. So the nice new restaurant won’t be seeing us. No doubt they’ll get enough other people going to stay in business. I was thinking of sending a mail to them explaining why I think it’s wrong, but I doubt they’d care anyway... OK rant over.
Saturday I woke early (damn) and made tried to catch up on reading the blogs I follow, and drank too much coffee (7 strong espresso cappuccinos). Seeing as a friend who I had not seen for about three years was coming over with his Irish girlfriend we decided that we had better get the house in order (Rachel as I said on your post we struggle as well...) and sort the garden seeing as I was supposed to be BBQ’ing for them. The garden was awful, for obvious reasons Mrs Stace and I just haven’t had the get up and go this year to get it in a usable state. Nothing like a visit to fix that... Mrs Stace did inside whilst I did the outside. Three hours later and the green bin was full of weeds etc, the garden looked respectable and I wanted someone to sort the pain in my back, and fix the blister I got on my thumb from brushing. I would love a bigger garden than we have (66m2) but seeing as the effort this one takes maybe it’s good that we don’t.
After that the furniture needed a rub down seeing as it had not been used all winter. Well actually sanding and oiling, but I wasn’t going to do that. I thought... Whilst wiping it down I saw that with a little soap, water and effort with a green scrubbing pad from the kitchen it came up almost as new. Why not I thought, it’s easy enough and I have time. 3 hours later you realise the difference between a small patch of chair and doing all 4. And a six person table... But at least it all looked great for when the guests arrived.
The evening was a little interesting. When it’s been so long since you’ve someone you wonder what’s changed, and are they still the same person as before the left. When I first met the guy I was 26 and he was 32. I’m almost 34 now, and he turned 40 this year. A lot has changed, in both of our lives, certainly mine in the last 8 months. But after a stuttering start to the evening it went great. Catching up on old times, talking about things now (no I didn’t tell him about the last 8 months, not telling him was about the worst of the evening, especially when he asked why we had not done the work to the house that we were planning on doing this year). We all spent an amount of the evening in stitches, all got a bit shocked when talking about his baby, and small daughter (who are now 8 and 13 respectively) growing up so fast. Or else it’s us growing older so fast...
Today was just a lazy day to get over it all. Relaxed in the garden (well after doing a second coat of oil on the wood) watched Rossi get an amazing fourth, after losing out on the last corner of the MotoGP (wishing my best to Randy de Puniet who managed to red flag the race when he started a chain accident that broke his tibia and fibia) and sat outside for food for the first time this year.
Well, it’s starting to get colder now, and the laptop screen is blocking the heat from the candles so I am going to call it and day and slumber until top gear!
Hmm, too many superlatives there I think... Still I’m in a quite a happy place, long may it continue.
Friday evening was superb. We had a small kerfuffle before we left regarding me and my other wardrobe. I was afraid that was going to be the tone of the evening, but we left that at home thankfully. We went a favourite restaurant of ours and enjoyed an evening talking, laughing and generally reminding each other why we have been together nearly 10 years now (and married for 6 of those). The food, as always at that place, was fantastic. Smoked Eel and toast starter for me, Carpaccio of beef for Mrs Stace, three very tender loins of lamb for me, a steak for Mrs Stace - very strange steak though, it came with gravy and two rounds of bread, nothing else... They gave her some free chips and I gave her some of my vegetables – but the meat was lovely she assured me. And finally, for desert, chocolate walnut brownie with white chocolate ice cream; I won’t try to describe it as it wouldn’t be fair to you. But needless to say it was a wonderful way to end the meal. Even if the ice cream was a little too rich and neither of us could finish both scoops.
We were going to try a new restaurant, on the edge of a man-made lake in the neighbourhood. We thought it would be nice to look out over the water as we ate. But... We looked at the menu and decided not to. I’m not the most activist person in the world, far from it in fact, but the there are a few things that I do know are bad. Eating Blue Fin tuna is one. We were watching a program on the BBC about it last year; the presenter interviewed the team of the Blue Fin Tuna Company about the fact that there are so few of the fish left that estimations are that there are 2 years left before it becomes extinct. That would be closer to 18 months now I guess. The people on the stand didn’t object to the study, or try to refute anything. No, they just said ‘we know, but don’t worry the company has contingency plans for when that happens.’ That sentence made me sick, they are knowingly hunting an animal to extinction, and they think I am worried about their company when they kill off their product. I couldn’t care less; I do care about needlessly killing off a species of fish though. So any restaurant that has that on the menu is one that I won’t be visiting if I can help it. So the nice new restaurant won’t be seeing us. No doubt they’ll get enough other people going to stay in business. I was thinking of sending a mail to them explaining why I think it’s wrong, but I doubt they’d care anyway... OK rant over.
Saturday I woke early (damn) and made tried to catch up on reading the blogs I follow, and drank too much coffee (7 strong espresso cappuccinos). Seeing as a friend who I had not seen for about three years was coming over with his Irish girlfriend we decided that we had better get the house in order (Rachel as I said on your post we struggle as well...) and sort the garden seeing as I was supposed to be BBQ’ing for them. The garden was awful, for obvious reasons Mrs Stace and I just haven’t had the get up and go this year to get it in a usable state. Nothing like a visit to fix that... Mrs Stace did inside whilst I did the outside. Three hours later and the green bin was full of weeds etc, the garden looked respectable and I wanted someone to sort the pain in my back, and fix the blister I got on my thumb from brushing. I would love a bigger garden than we have (66m2) but seeing as the effort this one takes maybe it’s good that we don’t.
After that the furniture needed a rub down seeing as it had not been used all winter. Well actually sanding and oiling, but I wasn’t going to do that. I thought... Whilst wiping it down I saw that with a little soap, water and effort with a green scrubbing pad from the kitchen it came up almost as new. Why not I thought, it’s easy enough and I have time. 3 hours later you realise the difference between a small patch of chair and doing all 4. And a six person table... But at least it all looked great for when the guests arrived.
The evening was a little interesting. When it’s been so long since you’ve someone you wonder what’s changed, and are they still the same person as before the left. When I first met the guy I was 26 and he was 32. I’m almost 34 now, and he turned 40 this year. A lot has changed, in both of our lives, certainly mine in the last 8 months. But after a stuttering start to the evening it went great. Catching up on old times, talking about things now (no I didn’t tell him about the last 8 months, not telling him was about the worst of the evening, especially when he asked why we had not done the work to the house that we were planning on doing this year). We all spent an amount of the evening in stitches, all got a bit shocked when talking about his baby, and small daughter (who are now 8 and 13 respectively) growing up so fast. Or else it’s us growing older so fast...
Today was just a lazy day to get over it all. Relaxed in the garden (well after doing a second coat of oil on the wood) watched Rossi get an amazing fourth, after losing out on the last corner of the MotoGP (wishing my best to Randy de Puniet who managed to red flag the race when he started a chain accident that broke his tibia and fibia) and sat outside for food for the first time this year.
Well, it’s starting to get colder now, and the laptop screen is blocking the heat from the candles so I am going to call it and day and slumber until top gear!
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